Even a stopped clock is right twice a day. (not referring to Wyden)
Really, the best reason (from the security org point of view) not to collect so much surveillance on your home population, is because it creates a single point of failure for foreign adversaries to gain access. Most of the interesting data is already commercially available for advertising.
Because to keep their jobs they have to be seen as doing something and the old 'this is something therefore it must be done.' truism still hold. They never look farther ahead than the next election, were lucky if the look farther than the next nights news most of the time
Unfortunately, Bernie talks the talk, but has failed to walk the walk in recent years. For example, congress was within one vote from passing a law that would require warrants for surveillance and missed it because Sanders wasn't there to vote.
The Senate on Thursday took up a key bill to reauthorize domestic surveillance programs while making changes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, with several substantial amendments on the line. One of the amendments, introduced by Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden and Republican Sen. Steve Daines, would have required authorities to obtain a warrant to access internet users’ search histories and browsing information. Uh, yes, pass that??
The amendment, however, met an extremely Senate grave: It “failed” with 59 yeas to 37 nays, one short of the 60-vote threshold it needed to overcome the streamlined vestigial filibuster. The splits didn’t fall neatly along partisan lines: 24 Republicans voted for it, while 10 Democrats voted against it. (Would you like to see the names of the Democrats who voted against it? Their names are: Tom Carper, Bob Casey, Dianne Feinstein, Maggie Hassan, Doug Jones, Tim Kaine, Joe Manchin, Jeanne Shaheen, Mark Warner, and Sheldon Whitehouse.)
https://www.paul.senate.gov/issues/protecting-privacy-civil-...